Educators respect and value the history of First Nations, Inuit and Metis in Canada and the impact of the past on present and the future. Educators contribute towards truth, reconciliation and healing. Educators foster a deeper understanding of ways of knowing and being, histories, and cultures of First Nations, Inuit and Metis.
In the grade 6/7 during my 490 practicum, students were learning about global justice. Part of the global justice unit students were learning about residential schools. I did inquiry lessons with the students that included stations. One station, I read the book, When I was Eight by Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiah-Fenton out loud to the students. We had class discussions about her life before attending the residential school and what her life was like while attending residential school. We discussed how we would feel if we were treated that way. A second station, students looked at photographs of students that were attending a residential school and another photograph of a young boy dressed in traditional clothing before he attended residential school and then a picture of him while at the school. Students were asked to analyze these pictures and write what they noticed. At another station students listened to stories from residential school survivors on the computer. Lastly, students read the apology stated by prime minister, Stephen Harper and included their own opinions about what they thought about the apology. As I walked around the classroom room listening to students, they were having in depth discussions about the content they were learning and placing themselves in their shoes and wondering what their lives would be like if school was like that for them.
